Chad Michael Murray has been wowing fans of One Tree Hill for years as Lucas Scott, but only recently has the actor stepped behind the scenes to try his hand at writing and directing.  Murray wrote tonight's special 1940s-themed episode, which transports the characters back to a time when mobsters ruled the streets and movies were still in black and white.  He's also spent the past week directing his first installment of the series, which will air sometime in January.  Murray may be best known for his acting, but fans will soon learn that his work behind the camera is equally fascinating.

Chad stepped away from his directorial duties this morning to speak with us about what's coming up on One Tree Hill.  Read on for his thoughts on tonight's episode, his script ideas that didn't make the cut, and who he thinks Lucas should ultimately end up with.

Hi, this is Don with BuddyTV and today I'm talking to Chad Michael Murray of One Tree Hill.  I know you've been really busy directing your first episode this past week.  How has that been going for you?

It's been going rather smooth actually.  It's been a lot of fun, I enjoy every minute of it, and it feels right, which is great.
 

What part of the process are you at now?

We're on my third day.  We're filming at the studio today and we're just doing some intimate scenes between a couple of characters.  I'm just trying to liven them up with some fires and things going on in the scene.
 

Has it been strange directing actors that you've worked with for six seasons?

Absolutely, but I think that we know each other well enough where you know exactly how to speak to somebody.  They already know what they're doing so well that they make me look good, so that's a benefit.
 

I know that Bethany Joy Galeotti is also directing an episode later this season.  Are there any tips you would pass on to her now that you kind of have the hang of it?

Preparation, preparation, preparation.  What someone told me was lack of preparation is only preparing to fail.  I took those words and did a lot of preparation.  Now that I'm so well prepared, it's easy to take the curve balls and really be in control of what's going on.
 

Do you know when that episode will air that you're directing?

I believe sometime in January, I'm not really positive.  It'll be the second episode back after the break.
 

Tonight is the big 1940s episode that you wrote.  What inspired you to set something in that time period?

It just seemed a good thing to do at the time. [laughs]  I just always loved that generation of film and I thought how cool it would be to take a retreat from doing the average, ordinary One Tree Hill episode and do something fun that I knew everyone would enjoy.  Sure enough, we all did.
 

I read another interview where you mention that you came up with a bunch of different themed episode ideas.  What were some of the ones that were too crazy for you to do?

Oh god, I had a Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas episode.
 

Really?  How would that have worked?

I don't want to explain because I'm actually going to use it in a film script that I have an idea for, but it would be kind of a Technicolor world meets a black and white world, and it was really, really trippy.  It was very different, but we wouldn't have been able to get away with it in a One Tree Hill world.  I think next year I wanted to do A Christmas Carol, with Jackson [Brundage] as Tiny Tim, and take all the characters from that story but do like the ghost of rock and roll past.  Those are some of the ideas that I batted around.
 

That's a great idea actually, I hope we get to see that.  What are the characters like in this 1940s universe?  How are they different?

Well, they're the same general people.  The relationships are very similar, there are a couple relationships that differ.  I mean, we don't really hit upon the fact that Lucas and Nathan are brothers, we don't really play that.  We don't play that Dan's their father, that's definitely a difference.  So some of the character relationships are different, but primarily they're the same people.  Dan's still the bad guy, he's still the villain.  Lucas and Nathan still have the loves of their lives.  It just goes to show that no matter what time they met, no matter what era, they still would have been star-crossed lovers.  As tacky as that is to say.
 

Now that you're getting into writing and directing, are there any writers or directors that particularly inspire you?

Oh, absolutely.  Martin Scorsese is number one on my directors list.  It's tough, there's just so many different things out there that I fall in love with, so many different things that I like.  So I'm just going to find what works for me, find what I'm good at.  Hopefully I am good at something!  And stick with a particular genre for awhile.
 

Are we going to see any filming of Lucas's movie?  Are there going to be actors cast as you and the other characters?

It's funny, I was having that conversation with Mark Schwahn today.  I would love to tell you guys what I know, but I can't let that information go.  We're all bouncing around ideas.
 

Has the episode with James Van Der Beek filmed yet?

Yeah, we already shot one.  He's actually coming back for another two more, so I'm very excited about that.
 

That's great, what was he like to work with?  Did you work with him on Dawson's Creek at all?

Oh yeah.  I did 18 episodes I think of the Creek.  James and I had a good relationship, he's just always a nice guy.  Now he came back here and it's funny because I've grown up a little bit since then.  I was 19 years old on the Creek, so I think it was interesting for him to see.  We had a great time bouncing off of one another and really had a nice time catching up.
 

Now that you've written and directed, which one do you like more?  Is there one you want to do more of in the future?

I'm having a lot of fun directing, I really am.  I love writing, absolutely love it.  I love all the aspects, I really do.  I'm really just not sure.  It depends on what the project would be and where I want to go.  I know that I want to continue writing, because that's just something I do.  It's something that I'm consistently doing, I do it all my spare time.  I'd like to continue down that path.  In the directing world, we'll see.  If I feel comfortable enough and know the material well enough on a particular project and someone says, “Hey, why don't you take a shot kid,” then I'll do it.  Until that moment comes I won't know.
 

Just one last question.  A lot of fans debate over whether Lucas should end up with Peyton or Brooke.  Do you have a personal preference of who you think Lucas should end up with?

Oh god no.  When you're an actor, you can never have a personal preference.  I think that the characters themselves have personal preferences.  I enjoy working with all the actresses on the show.  It's kind of funny, the only one he hasn't been romantically linked to is Haley.  I was actually going to put that in the ‘40s just so we could play it, but I didn't want to make the fans mad.  I knew that they'd be like, “What, he's kissing Haley?  That's terrible!”

- Interview conducted by Don Williams
(Image courtesy of the CW)